Qatar's hosting of the upcoming 2022 World Cup brought in thousands of migrant workers to build stadiums and other infrastructure. These foreigners left everything behind in search of a better life. But once in Qatar, they have often experienced exploitation: unpaid wages, confiscated passports and extreme working conditions that have led to several thousands of deaths, according to various NGOs. Some migrant workers agreed to speak to our reporters Chloé Domat and Rammohan Pateriya for this special full-length report. They explain how their Qatari dream has turned into a nightmare, even if Doha also offers some opportunities for upward social mobility.
More than 2.5 million foreigners live and work in Qatar. The wealthy emirate uses oil and gas money to attract these workers, who come mostly from East Africa and the Indian subcontinent. Migrant workers represent 90 percent of Qatar's population. They were the ones who built all the infrastructure for the World Cup: the airport, the metro, the luxury hotels and of course, the brand-new stadiums.
